Stool



Dec, 23, 1930. J. H. coATEs ET AL STOOL Filed Jan. 16 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet l 1930. J. H. coATEs ET AL 1,785,768

STOOL Filed Jan. 16, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 i I ED I STATES Patented Dec. 23, 1930 PATENT OFFICE Jam/Lush. ooarrns, RALPH s. -HWE,QAND WILLIAM COSTELLO, on NEW BRITAIN, eonnnerrou'r, assrenoas TO THE; NEW BRITAIN MACHINE COMPANY, on NEW BRITAIN, oonnncrr ounn CORPORATION, or connnc'rrcu'r Application filed January 16, 1929, Seria1 No..332,838.

"This invention pertainsxto furniture and more particularly to furniture made of sheet material. -For purposesof illustration the inventionis herein. disclosed as embodied in a stoolintended for bathroom use. Except for minor features hereinafter A specifically pointed-rout, this stoolfconsists wholly of sheet metal parts permanently united, as by welding', theconstruction and arrangement of the seat and legs with their connecting elements being such as to provide very great strength,

stiffness and rigidity without undue increase ofweighaQ; Y 7

The parts (particularly'the legs) of articles of furniture' madeof sheet metal-are al whensuch a sheetmetal stool'or chair is unsymmetrically loaded or: subjected to lateral pressure,,or when the stool rests upon anuneven surface, it is racked, becomes loose in its joints, and may even collapse by'bending of the partsor breaking away of welded or riveted joints. In accordance with the'pre'ss ent invention the legs and-seat are so constructed and relatively arranged as to provide maximum strength: and to distribute the load to the best: advantage, while the legs (here disclosed as four in number) areunited by acontinuous bracingcollar intermediate the upperand lower ends of the legs, and which effectively opposes relative-movement of adjacent or opposite legsso thatthe structure is as as a wooden stool,although much'lighter, cheaper-to make, and not subject to injury from heat or moisture.

In the accompanying drawings wherein one desirable embodiment of the invention is illustrated by way of example,

Fig. 1 is a side. elevation of a stool of a type adapted for bathroom use;

1 Fig. 2 is a vertical section, to larger scale, substantially on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 showing detailsof the seat member of the stool;

Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6 are sections respectively c on the lines 3-3, 44,'55 and 6+6 of Fig.

' 1, to larger scale;

Fig. 7 is a horizontal section, substantially on the line 7-7 of'Fig. 1, to larger scale;

Fig. 8 is a section, substantially on the line 8-'8' of Fig. 1', looking up toward the under side of the seat; and Fig. 9 is a fragmentary section, substantially on the line 99 of Fig. 7.

In accordance with the preferred construction the seat 1 is substantially circular and is made from a disk of sheet metal of suitable diameter and gage. This seat comprises a central portion 2 which is slightlydepressed below the level'ofthe rim portion 3, thus strengthening and stiffening the seat so that it does" not tend to sag" at its central portion. Incidentally the shallow depression above this central; portion 2 of the seat is Well adapted to receive a layer 4 of heat insulating material, such for example as sheet cork, rubber, wood veneer, or the like, which may be'secured to the part 2 by means of any suitable adhesive and which furnishes a seat surface of agreeable feel or appearance. If desired, the top of this veneer layer t maybe flush with the upper face of the rim 3 or may beslightly' above or below such rim'as is preferred.

The outer edgeoftheseat is turned down I to form a depending marginalflange 5 whose lower edge, if desired, may be turned inwardly at 6 to provide a smooth finish. This seat. member, with its marginal flange and its depressed central portion is exceedingly stiff and strong and capable of carrying a very heavy weight Without bending or sagging, even though it be made of relatively thin material.

As here shown, the stool is provided with four legs tapering in width from their upper toward their lower ends, and adjacent'legs are arrangedto diverge from theirupper to- WardItheir lower ends. The upper end of each leg preferably consists of a substantially flat piece of the sheet material, as indicatedat 8 in Fig. 8, and this flat portion is bent inwardly to provide theattaching flange 9. The; attaching flanges are placed in contact withithe under surfaceyoflthe part 2 of the, seat and are permanently attached there tapas-shy xneans ni spot. welding or thelike,

50 V tal plane, such plane being between the upper and lower ends of the legs and preferably an anti-friction cap indicated at 10. While Welding is preferred as a means of uniting the legs tothe seat, it is contemplated that other means, such for example as rivets, may be employed, although rivets or bolts are not so desirable since their heads are unsightly. As here shown the attaching flanges 9 of the legs are disposed wholly within and adjacent to the rib-like marginof the depressed portion'2 which dis-' tributes the load in the most effective man;

ner to the several legs. As the upper endsof the legs are spaced inwardly from the flange, 5, the latter forms a convenient means at all points for lifting the stool, and as theflange 5 is not called upon to carry the thrust of the legs, there is no tendency. to deform it or bend it out of shape as commonly occurs when the legs are secured to the flange.

'1 Immediately below the planeof the lower edge of the flange 5, the legs assume" a section substantially such as; shown in Fig. 3, com-= prising the two outer flange portions 11 and 12 disposed in planesat right angles to each other, and a diagonal connecting member 13.'

As above stated, the legs taper downwardly, and near their lower ends are of reducedsection as illustrated in Fig. 6. Preferably the extreme lower end of each leg is bent into substantially annular form, as -indicated atl l (Fig. 5), and is thus well adapted to receive a tip member, such as a plug projecting upwardly into the end of the leg,.or preferably 15 telescoping over the end ofthe leg, such cap being of rubber or the-like. 1

r The continuous bracing collar, as here disclosed comprises cross bracemembers 16 of sheet metal-connecting adjacent legs. Preferably'these brace members comprise vertical webs deeper at their ends than at their central portions, thus forming truss-like elements capable of supporting a substantial weight without bending, as .forexample if the foot ofa person be placed upon the brace. The end portions of these braces are'secured, as for example by welding,to" the flange elements 11 and 12 of adjacent, legs. Preferably themembers'16, as shown in Fig.4, are provided with inwardly directed integral flanges 17 disposed in a substantially horizonsomewhat nearer the lower ends than the up per ends. In accordance with the present invention 7 the ends of adjacent flanges 17 are'united by means of connector members 19, Fig. 7 These connector members are of sheet metal and suitably shaped to fit within the hollow ofthe legs and to overlap the ends of the flanges. 17 The connector 'member's are unitedto the flanges bylwelding or the like and thus unite the cross braces 16 to form a continuous rigid collar connecting all of the legs and effectively preventing relativemove being joined by welding.

i this 10th day of January ment either of adjacent legs or of legs diagonally opposite; This continuous collar, which is substantially'rigid both vertically and horizontally makes the stool extremely still and although the she'etmetal employed may be of relatively thin gage, a stool thus constructed is as strong, stiff and rigid, and even more durable than a wooden stool of ordinaryconstruction;At the same time it'is lighter in weightithan a; wooden stool, or most other types of metal stool,it is cheaper to manufacture,and is not subject to injury from moisture or temperature change. The

outer surfaceof the stool is smooth and free from projections,the corners are smoothly rounded and free-from sharp angles which might cause injury tothe person, and the: entire surface of themetal may readily be covered with a protective lacquer "or-enamelto give a pleasingv or'ornamen'tal appearance;

We claim:

. 1. A sheet metal stool arse at and a plurality of legs, each leg being united at its' upper end to the seat, the legs diverging downwardly, and a continuous collar uniting thelegs intermediate thein-upper and lower ends, said collar comprisingi cross bracegm'embers uniting each adjacent pair, of legs," each brace member having a substantially vertical web deeper atits ends than at its middle and having an inwardly directed horizontal flange, and connectormembers of sheetmetal uniting adjacent ends I of :the horizontal flanges of the bracemembers,all of said parts 2. A sheet metal stool having a seat least three-legsleach leg being united ,at-its 7 upper end to the seat by welding, the legs diverging downwardly, and" means connecting all of the legs intermediate their upper and lower ends, such connecting means comprising verticalweb portions, each web, portion being united 'at its opposite ends respec 

